All posts tagged: BLOs

Assam BLOs To Check ‘Non-Human’, ‘No Image’ Entries In Electoral Rolls After Dogs Found On Bihar List | India News

Assam BLOs To Check ‘Non-Human’, ‘No Image’ Entries In Electoral Rolls After Dogs Found On Bihar List | India News

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Last Updated:November 23, 2025, 17:53 IST Election Commission has ordered Assam officials to remove non-human and no image entries from electoral rolls. EC directed its field staff in Assam to check for ‘non-human’ and ‘no image’ entries. Amid claims that the voters’ list in Bihar carried photographs of cats and dogs, the Election Commission has directed its field staff in Assam to check for ‘non-human’ and ‘no image’ entries in electoral rolls and replace them with proper photographs of registered voters. In its instructions issued to the chief electoral officer of Assam, the poll authority said that “software-based” reports should be generated for ‘black and white images’, ‘not to specification images’, ‘non-human images’ and ‘no image’ entries. “For replacement of such images, booth-level officer(BLO) field verification should be done and necessary applications – Form-8 along with photograph as per specification – should invariably be collected from the electors and a proper track record of such replacement should be kept,” the EC order read. Additionally, an EC official said that BLOs are also authorised to take …

Kerala Chief Electoral Officer warns of stern action against those obstructing BLOs from conducting SIR work

Kerala Chief Electoral Officer warns of stern action against those obstructing BLOs from conducting SIR work

Published by Parlour News

Chief Electoral Officer (Kerala) Rathan U. Kelkar | Photo Credit: NIRMAL HARINDRAN Obstructing booth-level officers (BLO) from discharging their duties related to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls will attract “strict criminal action,” Chief Electoral Officer (Kerala) Rathan U. Kelkar has said. Addressing a press conference of the progress of SIR in Kerala in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday, Mr. Kelkar said incidents were reported in Malappuram and Idukki where BLOs were prevented from doing their work. “As long as a person is appointed as a BLO, that person will be considered as a public servant for the work of the Election Commission of India (ECI). Everybody should know that they have a prominent role to play. District Collectors have been instructed to take strict criminal action under Section 121 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita against anyone who tries to obstruct their work ,” Mr. Kelkar said. Section 121 deals with instances where public servants are hindered in discharging their duties. Mr. Kelkar said his office was taking the SIR forward “through teamwork” and …

BLOs boycott SIR work across Kerala after officer’s suicide

BLOs boycott SIR work across Kerala after officer’s suicide

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The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise in Kerala was affected across the state on Monday as Booth-Level Officers (BLOs) boycotted work following the suicide of an officer allegedly due to work strain. Aneesh George, 44, a BLO in Payyannur, Kannur, was found hanging at his house on Sunday. Family members and residents alleged that he took the extreme step because of work-related pressure. Various trade unions of state government employees, including the Action Council of State Government Employees and Joint Committee of Teacher Service Organisations, held protests at the Chief Electoral Officer`s office in Thiruvanathapuram and district collectorates, demanding that authorities refrain from exerting excessive pressure on BLOs and consider postponing the SIR. The Kerala NGO Association also staged protests across the state, demanding that SIR procedures be stopped to prevent further suicides. Meanwhile, the body of George was handed over to his relatives after the postmortem on Monday.  George`s family reiterated that he had been under severe work pressure related to the SIR. Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan said that a preliminary probe …

Preliminary probe into BLO’s death finds no evidence of work pressure: Collector

Preliminary probe into BLO’s death finds no evidence of work pressure: Collector

Published by Parlour News

District Collector Arun K. Vijayan in a statement said that no link has been established so far between the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) duties and the death of booth-level officer (BLO) Aneesh George, who was found dead at his residence on Sunday. He said Mr. George was appointed to the post following the transfer of Anganwadi teachers as per an order issued on July 30, 2025. According to the officials, Mr. George was given required training and deployed for SIR work from October 4, 2025. He had been entrusted with distributing 1,065 enumeration forms in Part 18, of which 825 were already delivered. The Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) later clarified that only 50 forms remained to be updated on the portal, as the rest had already been distributed. Officials said the progress of form distribution at the booth was satisfactory and in line with district-level averages, the Collector said in the statement. The department stated that support systems had been fully arranged across the district, including deployment of Revenue officials and vehicle facilities for field-level …

TMC criticises ECI for failing BLOs; BJP accuses it of spreading panic over SIR

TMC criticises ECI for failing BLOs; BJP accuses it of spreading panic over SIR

Published by Parlour News

West Bengal’s ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Sunday criticised the Election Commission of India (ECI) for failing Block Level Officers (BLOs) at the forefront of the Special Intensive Review (SIR) of the electoral roll, even as the Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) accused it of spreading panic. BLOs demanding official duty status and security cover for SIR in West Bengal. (PTI/File) BJP leader and Union minister Sukanta Majumdar, who visited a voter assistance booth at Balurghat in his Lok Sabha constituency of South Dinajpur, said the TMC has spread baseless panic among people that those excluded from the electoral roll will be declared undocumented immigrants. “Genuine citizens will never be affected,” Majumdar said. TMC leader Kunal Ghosh cited the inconvenience BLOs have been complaining about and blamed the ECI for it. “The ECI should have given proper training to the BLOs and provided them with logistic support. It is not unnatural for people to break down under pressure,” Ghosh said. A State Election Commission official said a four-member ECI team will visit Kolkata and adjoining …

Election Commission Cracks Down On Bengal BLOs Over SIR Form Distribution Lapses | India News

Election Commission Cracks Down On Bengal BLOs Over SIR Form Distribution Lapses | India News

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Last Updated:November 09, 2025, 05:47 IST Sources told News18 that BLOs will first receive verbal warnings over the phone to adhere to the protocol. If they keep violating the norms, formal show-cause notices will follow Sources within the commission said that disciplinary proceedings may be initiated against officers who persist in flouting the rules. (File pic: PTI) The Election Commission (EC) has instructed District Election Officers (DEOs) in West Bengal to take strict action against Booth Level Officers (BLOs) who fail to follow the prescribed procedure for distributing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) forms. According to sources, the EC has issued special directives to all districts, directing that show-cause notices be served to BLOs found distributing forms from random or public locations instead of conducting door-to-door visits, as required under election rules. Sources told News18 that BLOs will first receive verbal warnings over the phone to adhere to the protocol. If they continue to violate the norms, formal show-cause notices will follow. The directive further instructs Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) to issue show-cause notices to any …

SIR exercise begins in Bengal: All you need to know before BLOs land up at your doorstep

SIR exercise begins in Bengal: All you need to know before BLOs land up at your doorstep

Published by Parlour News

As part of the implementation of the much-anticipated and politically hyper-charged SIR of electoral rolls in West Bengal, booth level officers start knocking on voters’ doors from Tuesday. Here are answers to some questions that readers may have on how to participate in the exercise: The SIR exercise is being conducted to ascertain your eligibility as a legitimate voter of this country. (HT File Photo) 1. How to identify booth level officers (BLOs)? Will they be accompanied by representatives of political parties? All BLOs will carry identity cards bearing QR codes, which can be scanned to verify the identity details of the officer concerned from the Election Commission website. Moreover, the enumeration forms would also bear the name and phone number of the BLO assigned for the specific booth she or he will be covering. Given the political sensitivity of the exercise, it is likely that booth level agents (BLAs) identified and assigned by political parties would be accompanying the BLOs. 2. How would I know when a BLO would come to my address? What …

West Bengal SIR: BJP to deploy more than 50,000 booth-level agents | Kolkata News

West Bengal SIR: BJP to deploy more than 50,000 booth-level agents | Kolkata News

Published by Parlour News

With the training of booth-level officers (BLO) for the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter lists underway in West Bengal, the BJP has said that it has finalised the names of more than 50,000 people to be deployed as booth-level agents (BLA-2s) for the exercise. According to sources in the State Election Commission, all political parties have submitted a preliminary list of BLAs. In a list dated October 30, the BJP submitted the names of 7,912 people for deployment as BLA-2s. BLA-2s help BLOs at the booth level as shadow partners. A senior BJP leader said there was still time left as the door-to-door visits by enumerators would start on November 4. “We will be giving more names. All the data is yet to be uploaded. Data from the districts also have to be uploaded,” he said. Story continues below this ad According to BJP sources, the party plans to submit over 50,000 BLA-2 names and has decided to give the names of 10,000-11,000 BLA names. In total, the party will submit close …

ECI Seeks Report from UP Chief Electoral Officer after SP Levels Charge of Biased Posting of BLOs ahead of Bypolls

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In its complaint, the Samajwadi Party alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party government in Uttar Pradesh was removing police and civil administration officials from the Muslim and Yadav communities in the assembly seats where bypolls are due. (File image/PTI) A delegation from the Samajwadi Party met the Election Commission of India on Thursday and alleged bias and politicisation of postings of booth-level officers (BLOs) in Kundarki assembly constituency of Moradabad district and Sisamau seat in Kanpur district The Election Commission of India has sought a detailed report from the Uttar Pradesh chief electoral officer (CEO) after allegations of bias against the posting of officials belonging to certain communities surfaced ahead of bypolls in the state, News18 has learnt. The report has been sought based on a complaint from the state’s main opposition party – Samajwadi Party. A delegation from the SP met the commission on Thursday and alleged bias and politicisation of postings of booth-level officers (BLOs) in Kundarki assembly constituency of Moradabad district and Sisamau seat in Kanpur district. “Taking cognisance of the complaints …